Shifting Perspective
by Ryeloza
Summary: AU Beginning at the end of season 4. Phoebe's pregnant and grieving over Cole, but will she ever get him back? Piper and Leo struggle to have a child. Paige is still trying to find her place in the family.
1. Author's Notes

Synopsis: AU It's a world where Phoebe still has premonitions regarding innocents, Piper does more than complain about having a normal life, Leo stays in character, and Paige isn't stupid! That's right! It's my own version of the show, beginning at the end of season 4!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own or have rights to anything _Charmed_ related. If I did do you think Brian Krause would have left the show?

**A/n**: This story begins right after the episode, "Long Live the Queen." After much consideration, it is my personal opinion that the real downfall of _Charmed_ begins after this episode. I think that anything wrong with the show today can be directly correlated to the end of Phoebe and Cole's relationship. It was handled so poorly that it chronically messed up every single character in some way.

Now, this is not to say that I have hated the past 4 seasons of _Charmed_. In fact, there have been some episodes I have absolutely adored ("Sense and Sensibility," "Witchness Protection," "The Seven Year Witch," for example). I just feel like the writers have really betrayed some of the elements that make _Charmed_ what it is, so, I thought to myself, why not write my own version?

Just a warning to everyone who is still reading: I am a HUGE fan of character development and introspection and other fun stuff like that, so parts of this may be more angsty than they would be on the show. But hey, that's my prerogative as the author.

Okay, so...on with the show.


	2. Great Expectations Always Fall Short

**Shifting Perspective**

**Chapter One: Great Expectations Always Fall Short**

Phoebe had never been one for life plans, mainly because she had never seen any point in expecting much out of life. When people expected too much, they got hurt; Phoebe knew this from a preposterously young age. She had figured out early in life that there were two kinds of people; the people like Prue, who despite everything, still expected her parents to somehow do for her what everyone else's parents did: to see her high school graduation; her first car; her wedding; and the people like Phoebe, who realized that there was no way it could possibly happen. It was an awfully jaded look for someone so young, she supposed, but it had certainly saved her from getting too attached to or hurt by anyone.

If only, Phoebe supposed, she had continued on, blind to the future; not making plans; not expecting anything out of her life. But no, she had broken her own cardinal rule and started to organize her life instead of following her gut instincts to live on a whim. Go back to school (so maybe that hadn't been _so_ disastrous). Get a job (so far, so good). But creating a life, a dream, with the man she loved (sorry, Pheebs, you expected too much, planned too far ahead, raised expectations too high). So here she was, widowed, alone, and pregnant. This had not been part of the plan.

Old Phoebe, she reasoned, could have dealt with this. Non-future planning, premonition free, no expectations Phoebe, while she would have grieved, could also have rolled with the punches. Who oh why had she insisted on maturing?

She rolled over onto her back and put her hands on her stomach, wondering why fate had such an ugly sense of humor. Why was she the one pregnant when she was all alone and terrified of having a baby, and Piper and Leo, who had been trying for months, were completely unable to conceive? What kind of a mother could she possibly be? She wasn't ready for this. Not at all.

"What happened to us, Cole?" she whispered. "Why couldn't we just make it work?"

Feeling completely nauseated, she sighed and closed her eyes, trying to block out her pain and wondering when getting through the day would stop being a battle she didn't want to fight.

* * *

The phone rang loudly for the third time in a row and Paige tried mentally to tell it to shut up and that she was almost there, but she clearly had to work on her person to inanimate object telepathy skills, because the phone ignored her. Mid-way through the next ring, she managed to grab it and click on the "talk" button. "Hello?" she said.

"Miss Matthews, report to the principal's office immediately. You are in a lot of trouble for failing to contact your best friend at any time in the past three months."

"Hey, Glenn," said Paige, grinning widely. "What's going on?"

"Not much. I was just thinking about how, much to my horror, I've been living at home for nearly three months, and yet I haven't seen you once. I think you're slacking in the best friend department, and I have to say, I think I'm permanently scarred."

"You're living at home?" said Paige, purposely ignoring the extraneous gibber that was pure Glenn. "Since when do nomads live with their parents?"

"Since all funds have becomes null and void. You know, usually I'd just stay with you, but I thought after what happened last time..."

"Yeah," said Paige, sighing. "I understand."

"Anyway," said Glenn, "I was hoping we could hang out sometime soon. I'm leaving for Mexico in a couple of weeks and I wanted to see you. Maybe convince you to come with me."

"Oh, Glenn, I don't-"

"Come on, Paige. I know you're living your magical life and all, but can't you take a break once in awhile?"

"No, it's not so much that," said Paige. "I've got other stuff going on. Sister stuff. My one sister's husband just died."

"Oh, God," said Glenn. "I'm so sorry, Paige. I didn't...Is she okay?"

"Not really," said Paige, and to her surprise, she felt herself choking up a little. "I'm worried about her."

"Which sister is it?" asked Glenn. "The...um...snarky one? I'm sorry. I mean that in the nicest way possibly. I'm not doing so well here."

Paige laughed a little. "It wasn't Piper," she said, supplying her helpless friend with a name. "It was my other sister, Phoebe."

"Okay," said Glenn. "Well I hope Phoebe finds some peace."

"Thanks," said Paige. She rubbed her temple, feeling more tense than she thought she should. "I've really missed you, Glenn."

"I've missed you too," he said. "But I totally get that Mexico is out. Do you think maybe dinner sometime before I leave though?"

"Of course," said Paige. "It's a requirement. How about next Friday?"

"Perfect," said Glenn. "You'll pick me up?"

"Yeah, yeah. I got it. Seven?"

"That's fine," said Glenn. "Can't wait."

"Me either," said Paige. "You have no idea. Love you."

"I love you too. Bye."

"Bye."

Paige clicked off the phone and set it back in its cradle, feeling completely drained and guilty. She wanted to go to Mexico. She wanted to run off and be irresponsible and not tied down to a job and a life and a family. As horrible as it sounded, there it was.

Sighing, Paige tried to put it out of her mind and headed upstairs to check on Phoebe.

* * *

Phoebe was sitting on her bed, reading one of the baby books Cole had bought on his I'm going to be a father high, feeling utterly calm for the first time in weeks. For some reason she felt deep down like everything was going to be okay; that she would be able to handle this.

Next to her, the bed creaked and shifted weight and she turned to see Cole lying next to her on his side, watching her with that loving look in his eye. "Hi," he said softly.

"Hi," said Phoebe, putting aside the book and turning onto her side so she was facing Cole. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," said Cole.

Phoebe smiled and reached out her hand, caressing Cole's cheek. "Are you going to stay this time?"

"No," said Cole. "I can't. I just came to say goodbye, and to tell you something."

"What?" asked Phoebe.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm sorry I let you down. When I took in the Hollow I wasn't thinking about anything but saving your life. I didn't know that the Source would overtake me."

"What are you talking about?"

Cole's brow furrowed and Phoebe stopped stroking his face. "You don't know?" he asked.

"Know what?"

"The Source possessed me when I took in the Hollow. He took over the void in me that was leftover from Belthazor."

"What?" said Phoebe, her eyes widening. "Cole..."

"I thought you knew," said Cole. "I didn't choose to have it happen, Phoebe. I tried to fight him..."

Phoebe rolled onto her back, blinking back tears, and Cole took her hand and placed a kiss in her palm. "Please believe me," he said. "I never meant to hurt you."

"I know," said Phoebe. "I just can't believe how stupid I was. How did I not know?"

"You couldn't have," said Cole. He sighed. "I should have tried harder. I should have fought harder."

Phoebe flipped over again and kissed him as hard as she could. "I'm so sorry," she said. "I'm so, so sorry."

Cole smiled sadly at her and kissed her palm again. "I'm sorry too," he said. "Will you tell the baby about me? Let him know who I really was?"

"Cole, no," said Phoebe. "You can't leave. Please. I need you."

"Promise me, Phoebe," said Cole. "Please."

Phoebe nodded, the tears streaming down her cheeks and pooling uncomfortably around her neck. "Of course," she said. "But Cole..."

"I love you," said Cole, his voice barely audible. He leaned in and kissed her again and Phoebe closed her eyes tightly. When she opened them again, he was gone.

"Cole!" she called. "Cole, come back! Cole!"

"Phoebe!" she heard Paige call her name. She blinked profusely, and tried to fight the feeling of awareness that came each time Paige repeated her name. Finally, though, she sat bolt upright in bed and opened her eyes.

"Oh my God," she said. "Cole."

"Phoebe," said Paige, looking at her wide-eyed and frightened. She was sitting on the edge of the bed. "I think you were dreaming."

"No," said Phoebe. "No, it was real. It was real. Oh my God." And suddenly she was crying, hard, heaving sobs, and she threw her arms around Paige, clinging to her as tightly as she could. "It was real," she choked out.

"Phoebe, what's going on?" asked Paige, but Phoebe simply continued to weep, feeling more pain and anger than she ever had before.

They sat in the embrace for several minutes before Paige carefully extracted herself, saying, "I'm going to go call Piper, okay? I'll be right back."

Phoebe watched her as she left the room, continuing to breath heavily, tears still pouring down her face. How could she not have seen it? How could she have failed Cole so utterly and completely. "I'm sorry," she said to the empty room. "God, I'm so sorry." The room remained silent, though, and it overwhelmed her to the point of nausea. She couldn't be there any more. Anxiously, she stood and walked rather wobbly out of the room and towards the stairs. She could see Paige at the bottom of them, on her cell phone, and she headed towards her sister, eager to grasp any sort of physical contact. Just as she reached the last few steps, though, Paige turned around, and Phoebe collapsed, unable to go any further.

"Phoebe!" said Paige, sounding even more worried and scared than before. She clambered up to where Phoebe had crumpled herself and pulled her up into an awkward hug that Phoebe clung to as hard as possible. "Phoebe, what is going on?" asked Paige.

But all Phoebe could do was cry.

* * *

Piper flipped through the magazine she had randomly chosen without much thought or care, feeling more and more anxious by the minute. Dr. Harris' office had called her two days ago to tell her that they had the results of her fertility tests, and had asked her to come in to talk. Something had to be wrong, she knew it deep down in her soul. If everything was fine, why wouldn't they have just said so on the phone?

She had debated telling Leo about her appointment before finally deciding against it. The first time she had even mentioned Dr. Harris, Leo had looked at her skeptically, clearly not believing that a fertility expert could do anything for them. Getting pregnant was apparently one of those things he couldn't help but view from the perspective: "Back in my day...," though because he was Leo, he'd supported her anyway. So Piper had gone, and now here she was, about to prove Leo wrong; it wasn't just a matter of time, faith, and sex.

"Is there a history of infertility in your family?" she had been asked. What a joke that question had been. Her mother had had four kids, no problem, and now her little sister was pregnant even though she didn't want to be, a fact Piper couldn't quite help but be jealous of.

It was somewhat odd, though, her sudden obsession with having a child. Before she had found out she was a witch with magical powers and a menagerie of angry demons after her, children had been something obscure in the future that she never thought about. How could she bring a baby into the world and then possibly die and leave it alone and motherless? She knew from experience that it was devastating; something one could never get over. And she was not one apt to inflict pain on others, in any manner. Then the whole magic gig had come along and the idea of ever having a child had added a whole new layer of scariness. Not only were her chances of survival significantly reduced, but her baby's would be too. Piper wasn't quite convinced she would be able to live through her child's death.

So this whole baby thing had snuck up on her like a slithering snake. She supposed it began when she went to the future and saw that little girl; her and Leo's little girl. Seeing and hugging that little girl had sparked an instantaneous love, one that twisted up through her and nearly choked her. But there was a difference between seeing an obscure, and now almost entirely false, future, and reality; one that led Piper to believe that she still couldn't risk ever having a baby. And then all of sudden she was blurting out overt hints about children to Leo and trying to conceive and visiting fertility doctors. Where, where, where had this come from? It wasn't as though her concerns had dissipated. No, it was almost as though they had been overwhelmed by that intense love that she had felt, and wanted to feel again. Her love was conquering her fear.

But after all this time, had it become impossible?

"Piper Halliwell," called the nurse, and Piper stood up so quickly the magazine fell out of her lap and onto the floor. She crouched and picked it up, flinging it onto the table as she walked towards the door. The nurse led her to Dr. Harris' office door, knocked, and then opened the door and let Piper in, shutting the door behind her.

"Hello, Piper," said Dr. Harris standing and extending his hand. Piper shook it firmly, though she was certain her hands were clammy, and when he released his grip she rubbed both hands nervously across her thighs.

"Hi," said Piper, taking a seat.

"Your husband couldn't make it today?" asked Dr. Harris. "We never did get a chance to test him."

Piper laughed nervously. "Oh, uh, no. He had to work. I don't think he's the problem, anyway."

Dr. Harris nodded and leaned back in his chair. "Probably not," he said. "But he might want to get tested sometime anyway."

"What does that mean?" said Piper. "Please, just tell me. I don't think I can take much more of this waiting business."

"Well, Piper," said the doctor, "I really wish I had better news for you. The truth is that we discovered a lot of scar tissue all over your uterus and one of your fallopian tubes has been severely damaged. I have to ask you, have you received any serious blows to your abdomen?"

Piper swallowed hard and nodded. "Yes. I...well...I've been in a few...accidents. But what does that mean?" she asked. "Does it mean I'm not going to be able to get pregnant?"

Dr. Harris regarded her for a moment and then said, "I really think your chances of getting pregnant are significantly reduced, if not completely impossible. Even with treatment here, I don't think there's much of a possibility."

Struggling to maintain composure, Piper swallowed the lump in her throat several times, only to have it bob back up, stronger and more overwhelming each time. Unbidden, she began to cry, feeling overemotional and weak. "That can't be it," she said, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand. "I mean, there has to be some way."

"You and your husband can certainly keep trying," he said. "I have seen miracles before. But I wouldn't get your hopes up."

"And you really don't think treatment would help?"

"Maybe down the road," said Dr. Harris, "you might consider it. It's expensive, though, and physically and emotionally demanding. You'd need to think very carefully about whether or not you want to expose yourself to that."

Piper shook her head. "I can't believe that's it. What am I supposed to tell my husband?"

"I'm so sorry," said Dr. Harris. "Truly, I am." He paused for a moment, and then said, "Is there anything else I can do for you? Do you have any other questions?"

"No," said Piper. "No, I'm just going to..." She gestured towards the door, unable to get any other words out with her tears coming so fast now. Dr. Harris immediately rose and came around the desk, helping her out of the chair and to the door, and she had to resist the urge to shake him off of her and throw a temper tantrum in the middle of his office. How could this possibly be it? After everything, how was she supposed to accept that she was never going to get to have that little girl she had seen in the future?

And how on earth could she possibly tell Leo?

She managed to wait until the door to the waiting room was firmly shut behind her before she leaned back against the wall, covered her eyes with her right hand and openly began to sob. The breakdown had barely begun, though, when her cell phone chirped obnoxiously, and she fumbled through her purse to pull it out.

"Hello?

"Piper, you need to get home right now," said Paige, more quietly than her normal speaking volume. "Phoebe is kind of freaking out and I don't know what to do."

Piper took a deep breath and tried to stop from sounding upset herself. The last thing Paige needed was two psychotic sisters to deal with. "Okay," she said. "I'll be home in fifteen." She clicked off the phone and tossed it back in her purse, rubbing her eyes one more time before heading down for the car. When she pulled into their driveway minutes later, she paused to pull down the mirror and make sure no one would be able to tell she'd been crying. No matter what was going on in her life, Phoebe had to come first right now; after all, she was the one alone and pregnant. Satisfied that her sisters wouldn't notice that something was wrong, Piper climbed out of the car and headed into the house, surprised to find Paige cradling Phoebe on the stairs.

"Phoebe?" she said quietly, approaching her sisters and sitting down on the stair below them. She took Phoebe's hands in hers and squeezed them gently. "What's going on?" she asked, directing the question as much at Paige as at Phoebe.

In response, Phoebe sobbed loudly. "I...failed..." she managed to choke out, and Paige patted the back of her head a couple of times while throwing a slightly terrified look at Piper.

"What do you mean, honey?" asked Piper.

"Cole," said Phoebe. "I failed...Cole."

"Oh, no, Phoebe," said Piper. "You didn't."

"Yes, I did, Piper," said Phoebe vehemently. She yanked herself out of Paige's embrace and glared at Piper, her whole face red and blotchy.

"We had to vanquish him," said Paige tentatively, and Piper tightened her grip on Phoebe's hands, fearful that her overemotional sister would smack Paige right into the wall.

"I know," said Phoebe, taking a deep breath. "I know we had to vanquish him. But we wouldn't have had to if I had just realized..."

"None of us knew he was the Source," said Piper, and Paige nodded her head in agreement. "You can't beat yourself-"

"You don't understand," said Phoebe, pulling her hands free and wiping her eyes. "Cole wasn't the Source. He was possessed by the Source."

"What?" said Paige.

"When he took in the Hollow to save us," said Phoebe, "he got hit by the Source's powers, and then we vanquished the Source and put back the Hollow. But because Cole had this...void where his demon half used to be, the Source was able to overtake his body. He suppressed Cole. And I never even noticed."

"Phoebe..."

"No, that's not even the worst of it. I didn't tell you guys this...but that night of the coronation..." Phoebe took a deep breath and looked Piper straight in the eye. "Cole managed to overcome his possession and he tried to give the powers of the Source to that wizard...but I...I came in and stopped him before he could. I took away his last chance."

Piper shook her head and forcefully took hold of Phoebe's hands again. "Phoebe, you can't do this. You can't second guess everything that's happened to you. Maybe you made some bad choices, but who knows what would have happened if you hadn't stopped Cole. That wizard could have become more powerful than we could have possibly dealt with. He could have killed us all."

"Yeah," said Paige. "Things happen for a reason, remember, Pheebs. And you know as well as I do that Cole would have done anything for you. He obviously did more than we were even aware of."

"But I should have noticed," said Phoebe. "I should have realized he was possessed and found some way to get rid of the Source without destroying Cole."

"How could you have known?" asked Piper. "None of us even suspected."

"Paige did," said Phoebe, and Paige flinched as though the words had physically struck her.

"No, Phoebe," said Paige. "I never thought he was the Source. Not until it was too late. I just didn't trust him."

"But if I had just listened to you. And my own intuition. I knew something was blocking my premonitions. I knew Cole was acting weird. But I didn't listen to myself. I just kept rationalizing everything and I didn't pay attention. I didn't want to see it, so I didn't." She closed her eyes and took a shuddery breath. "I don't know what to do. And I'm really scared. How can I raise this baby all by myself? How can I tell it that I failed its father?"

Piper glanced at Paige and moved up a step, putting an arm around Phoebe's shoulders and guiding her little sister's head to her shoulder. Following her lead, Paige rested her own head on Phoebe's other shoulder, and the trio sat in silence.

"Well," said Paige finally. "You still have us."

"Yeah," agreed Piper. "We're not going anywhere."

Phoebe smiled for a second, but it faded quickly and she sat up, forcing Piper and Paige to shift too. "You guys," said Phoebe. "I just wanted to say," she sighed, "that I'm really, really sorry. For everything. It will never happen again. I swear."

"It's okay," said Piper quietly.

"No it's not," said Phoebe, but Piper shook her head and Phoebe's words died away.

"I know that you're sorry," said Piper. "And I forgive you. You're my sister, Phoebe. And you may have made some bad choices, but you chose right in the end."

"Yeah," said Paige. "But just expect us to be butting into your love life constantly for at least the next ten years."

Phoebe smiled again. "That's nothing new," she said.

"But now you actually have to listen to us," said Paige, nudging Phoebe's shoulder. "Capiche?"

"Yeah," said Phoebe.

"Why don't you go take a nap?" said Piper, smoothing Phoebe's hair out of her face, and Phoebe shook her head.

"Okay." She leaned in and hugged Piper tightly, and then turned and did the same to Paige. "I love you both," she said, her voice reserved. "So much."

"I love you too," said Piper, tapping the back of Phoebe's leg as she stood up.

"Same here," said Paige. "Now go get some sleep."

Phoebe gave them one more sad smile and then started up the stairs to her room, leaving Piper and Paige alone together on the stairs.

"Do you think she'll be okay?" asked Paige. "I've never seen her like that before."

Piper nodded, and ran a hand through her hair, feeling more exhausted than she ever had before. "She'll be okay. I hope."

"That's reassuring."

Piper shrugged and rested her elbows on her thighs, burying her head in her hands while simultaneously chastising herself for showing any sign of weakness in front of Paige. Paige had dealt with enough for one day, and it would certainly not be the last breakdown they'd see from Phoebe. Some part of her, though, just couldn't help it. The weight of the world was on her shoulders, and she still had to figure out how to tell Leo they'd probably never have a child.

"You okay?" asked Paige.

"No," said Piper truthfully, very glad that her voice was muffled by her position.

"What's going on?" asked Paige. "Is it just Phoebe, or is it something else?"

Piper lifted her head, pulling her hair back out of her face and turning towards Paige. "I got the results of my fertility tests today," she said. "And they weren't so good." Pausing, she took a deep breath, and forced herself not to show any sign of tears. "Dr. Harris told me it would be difficult, if not impossible, for me to ever get pregnant."

"Oh, Piper," said Paige. She moved her hand momentarily, as though she was going to wrap it over Piper's shoulders and then thought better of it, and Piper suddenly felt twice as nauseated. She'd known Paige for almost a year and they were still so awkward around one another. "I'm really sorry."

"Yeah," said Piper. "Me too." She sighed loudly. "How am I going to tell Leo?"

"I'm sure he'll understand, honey," said Paige.

"I know," said Piper. "I just don't want to disappoint him. He was so excited."

Paige reached out and this time managed to grab hold of Piper's hand, squeezing it reassuringly. "Just don't give up," she said. "There's always a chance. I can't believe that you and Leo aren't meant to have a baby."

Piper nodded slowly and smiled slightly at Paige, feeling a little bit better, but still hopeless in her heart. It wasn't Paige's fault, though, and she had done the best possible job of comforting her. "Thanks," said Piper.

"No problem," said Paige, her eyes lit up a little. Piper felt a twinge of guilt. She'd never really noticed how desperate Paige was for acceptance before. Quickly, she leaned over and gave Paige a kiss on the side of her head, and then stood up and headed down the stairs to face the rest of the day.

* * *

That night, Paige climbed into bed at the appallingly early time of ten o'clock, wondering just when her life had become so exhausting. She was only twenty-four, but between work and demons and grieving, hopeless sisters, Paige was beginning to feel much older than she was. And on top of all of that, she was going to be an aunt, a fact she couldn't truly celebrate yet because it was tinted with so much pain and sadness.

She had wanted to mention the little twinge of excitement she felt about her niece or nephew to Piper in hope that her oldest sister would be able to relate, but after hearing the news about Piper's fertility tests, she wondered if the topic of babies would just degenerate into a sore point. But Piper had to be happy on some level, didn't she? Paige sighed loudly. How sad was it that it had been almost a year and she still hadn't connected with Piper enough to be able to read her without even trying? Hell, even when she did try it was nearly impossible to read Piper.

"When are you finally going to let me in?" whispered Paige, but the room remained uncomfortable silent.

With the weight of the world on her shoulders, Paige rolled onto her side and tried to push everything out of her mind and get some sleep.

* * *

"Are you okay?" asked Leo, and Piper jumped a little, still surprised after all this time that he could read her so well.

"What do you mean?" she asked, putting down her hairbrush and turning to face her husband. He was already in bed, but he was watching her intently, not looking at all tired.

"You seem quiet tonight. I was just wondering if something was wrong. You know, besides everything that's been going on with Phoebe."

Piper smiled half-heartedly and climbed into bed, shifting so her head was resting on Leo's chest. She could hear his heartbeat this way, and somehow that always calmed her down. Leo's hand found its way into her hair, and he began to stroke it idly, seeming to realize that Piper needed a minute to compose herself.

"It's been a long day," she began. "Phoebe had a meltdown, I had a meltdown, Paige looked like she wanted to have a meltdown."

"What happened?" asked Leo.

"I'm not exactly sure," said Piper. "Phoebe was hysterical because she's convinced that she could have saved Cole and she failed him. Somehow she discovered that he was possessed by the Source and now she's replaying every little thing that happened in her head and reading new meaning into it. I don't know how to even begin helping her with this." She sighed loudly. "I really wish Prue was here."

"Phoebe will get through this," said Leo. "She's strong enough. And she has the baby to think about now too."

"Yeah," said Piper quietly, angry at the momentary flash of jealousy that had overtaken her at the mention of her niece or nephew. "That's true." They lapsed into silence, and Piper wondered if she'd get away with just falling asleep and avoiding the big truth.

"What was your breakdown about?" Leo asked a minute later, and Piper tightened the arm she had wrapped around his torso. Apparently, it was going to come out tonight whether she was ready or not.

"I went to see Dr. Harris today," she said, and Leo's hand stopped its movement in her hair.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked. "Piper..."

"I didn't want to upset you," she said. "Until I knew one way or another."

"And now you do?"

"Yeah," said Piper, her tears springing up unbidden yet again. "The results weren't good. He said it's going to be almost impossible for us to get pregnant."

Leo was silent, which only made Piper's tears come faster, and she sat up abruptly, desperately needing to see his face. When he saw her tears, though, he merely pulled her into a tight hug, which Piper clung to desperately.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"It's not your fault," said Leo. "And I refuse to believe that what you heard today is the final word on the possibility of us having a baby." He pulled back and put his hands on her face, wiping the tears off of her cheeks. "I still believe in my heart that we're meant to have a child, Piper. And no doctor is going to tell me otherwise."

"I want to believe that," whispered Piper. "But Leo..."

"Shh," said Leo, gathering her into his arms again. "It's going to be okay, Piper. Trust me."

And deep down, Piper did.

* * *

Phoebe tossed and turned restlessly, unable to fall asleep after spending so much of the day napping. Her recent bout of nighttime insomnia was just one more inconsistency in her life, and she felt almost in pain by her inability to escape her thoughts through sleep. Groaning, she rolled over onto her back yet again, and in the process, her hand brushed her stomach, and she gasped, thrown into a premonition against her will.

She was walking into a nursery, and there was the seer, holding her baby. She screamed, but before she could do anything, the seer disappeared, taking her baby with her.

Phoebe came out of the premonition in physical pain, sitting bolt upright in bed and gasping for breath. Wildly, she looked around the room, convinced that the seer was hiding somewhere, waiting. Feeling more on edge than ever before, she threw herself out of bed and ran out into the hall towards Piper and Leo's room. She opened the door without knocking and slammed it shut behind her, leaning back against it.

"Phoebe?" said Piper in astonishment, and Phoebe barely registered that Piper was crying.

"The seer," she said breathlessly, unable to communicate the fear and pain she felt in every nerve of her being. "The seer want my baby! Oh my God. The seer wants my baby!" She doubled over, holding her stomach, her whole body on fire. The seer couldn't have her child. She'd never let her. Oh, God...

Without warning, every window in the room exploded, and Phoebe collapsed in a dead faint.


End file.
